Harry Redknapp not looking to spend

Harry Redknapp believes strengthening Queens Park Rangers in January will be pointless unless the club enjoys a productive December.

QPR is four points adrift at the bottom of the Premier League and launches a pivotal six-match month when it hosts Aston Villa in Redknapp's first home match Saturday.

It had been assumed owner Tony Fernandes would fund new signings when the transfer window opens, but the new QPR boss insists potential targets have not even been discussed.

"I'm not looking at January. It's about now. There are games between now and the window that will decide where we're going," he said. "If we don't pick up some points and wins in that period, what's the point of putting yourself in trouble trying to buy players? That way you could get lumbered with a big wage bill for next season. It's not the situation we want.

"We need to pick some points up. If we're in the mix then we can take a look at it again in January. I haven't discussed players with anyone -- the chairman or chief executive. We need to win matches now. What happens in January is way off. I've not looked at targets for January."

"Darren Bent's a good player, Villa paid 20 million pounds for him. I haven't asked about him," said Redknapp. "I was interested in Remy at Tottenham. That was then, now is a different situation. He'd be expensive. It depends on how we're going in January.

"I've always liked Joe, I signed him as an 11-year-old. No one knows him better than me. There's still a top player in there. I like him as a person as well as a player, but I've not made any enquiries. I tried to take him to Tottenham but he joined Liverpool.

"David's a top bloke, he'd be an asset to anyone just because of his presence and professionalism. But it's not something we're pursuing."

Redknapp is convinced he can mastermind QPR's Premier League survival after rescuing Portsmouth from a similarly bleak position in the 2005-06 season.

"It's going to be tough but we'll give it our best shot, it's all we can do," he said. "I'm optimistic, I think we can do it. I haven't come here to age myself another 10 years -- if I didn't think we could do it I wouldn't be here. This is a good club that deserves to stay in the league. They made a bit of effort in the summer and now we must get the wins we need."

"It's a similar situation to Portsmouth. It was pretty desperate at that time but we managed to put a run together. You just need that one result to set you off. ... We need a win to get us up and running. We've got the players to do it, we've got some real good players."

Meanwhile, Joey Barton said he expects QPR to be relegated -- and hopes he will not be around to help pick up the pieces. The 30-year-old midfielder is on loan at Marseille until the end of the season, but he wants to extend his stay in the south of France.

"The likelihood is, unless there is a massive turnaround in fortunes, QPR will be in the Championship next season," he told BBC's Football Focus. "What it seems to me as a neutral -- and I am in France, no matter that I am contracted -- is that they have got a big case of a lot of good individuals, a lot of good quality individuals, but not a good team.

"For me to be part of the side that stayed up and not be part of the side that went down, it would be difficult for me to go back."